My hat is off to this Cadillac Guy

[Joe V]

If this gentleman is on the forum, my hat is off and I'm saluting.  My guess is that his Cadillac runs like a swiss watch.


https://youtu.be/WhMbaMf-L58

[James Landi]

Joe,   thank you for sharing this piece of engineering brilliance and remarkable creativity.  I am thoroughly impressed...gratefully, James

[Dr. John T. Welch]

There is no substitute for dedicated tooling.

[Bobby B]

Joe,
  I also Thank You for sharing this. Slight bit of Engineering Genius created by Thinkers of an era gone by. Yes…..nothing else to do back then but use your brain to come up with simple but useful ideas before computers and cellphones changed our lives. I'd love to sit down over a cup of coffee and listen to his stories. Seems like a real gentlemen. America was built by people like this. Really Great find…
                                                                                                Bobby

[chrisntam]

Couple of things.  First, he's retired and has time to do that.  And it is impressive!  Second, does he keep it in the trunk in case he has a flat?   

Wouldn't a couple of strikes in the center of that cap from a dead blow hammer do the same thing?





















Calm down, just kidding!

[Steve Passmore]

Thats fantastic but a classic case of too much time on his hands. Hope I never reach that stage

[Smedly]

that works much smoother than sitting on the floor with one foot against on side of the cap and stomping the other side with my other foot.

[Jay Friedman]

Putting on a "Sombrero" wheel cover can be difficult for a senior citizen, since you have to line it up exactly without being able to actually see the prongs on the wheel as you do it and hit it hard in just the right spot.  Believe me I know, as I have a '49 with sombreros and I'll never see 70 again.  I bought one of Mr. Fackler's "Sombrero Snappers" and it makes the job a lot easier.  He's a mechanical engineer and that's what they do: design machines and devices to do just that.  And it's guys like him who designed and built our Cadillacs.

[gary griffin]

C. Jessen,

   I would imagine he leaves it home and if he has a flat he changes the tire and brings the hubcap home in the trunk and installs it in the comfort of his garage. It may be difficult to align it on rough terrain alongside the road.

[INTMD8]

Awesome!   

[James Landi]

How many Cadillacs have you purchased where some "tire changer" has beaten an expensive wheel cover into submission, and then returned your car with unrepairable dents on the rims of the cover(s).  Then there are the stories of 80's locking style wheel covers....has he created a marketable item?

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

If someone could only make a handy-dandy jig that changed Northstar head gaskets that easily.

Can you imagine???

[35-709]

When I take the '35 or '73 to the tire shop for alignment or tire work, I take the caps/wheel covers off first and leave them home.

[Jay Friedman]

I also leave my sombreros home when taking my '49 to a shop if the wheels must come off.

[Glen]

When I take the '35 or '73 to the tire shop for alignment or tire work, I take the caps/wheel covers off first and leave them home.

I leave the whole car at home and take only the tires/wheels in since they dented the fender getting the car off the alignment rack. 

[59-in-pieces]

Joe,
Thanks for the link.
Necessity is the mother of invention.
And, sour grapes are the fruit of nit-picking.
Bless those with a drive to keep on, and their ingenuity to make things and life better.
Time marches on; and, lucky are those who have a AAA card.
Yes, I was wrapped around the axle, until I read past the gap - to just kidding.
Have fun,
Steve B.

[DennisK]

Awesome video and piece of engineering! It beats lining it up and hitting it in the right spot.

[jaxops]

I leave the whole car at home and take only the tires/wheels in since they dented the fender getting the car off the alignment rack.

...as well as the fender skirts!  No one seems to know how to safely remove them!

That fellow was great.  What an ingenious device!  Bravo Zulu!!!

[J. Skelly]

To remove fender skirts on my '71 Eldorado without the risk of scratching the paint with the locking mechanism, I put a piece of clear vinyl tubing over the tip of the locking mechanism.  It allowed me to properly position the skirts without the worry.  The tubing will last for years.